Image: Burnet Institute Head of Malaria Immunity and Vaccines Laboratory, Professor James Beeson
The Head of Burnet Institute’s Malaria Immunity and Vaccines Laboratory, Professor James Beeson, and drug and alcohol researcher Amanda Roxburgh have been awarded lucrative NHMRC Investigator Grants.
Professor Beeson’s funding, valued at AUD$2,048,640, will support further research into the development of a malaria vaccine.
“Malaria continues to be a major global health problem, especially for young children, and a vaccine is urgently needed to achieve and sustain malaria elimination,” Professor Beeson said.
“This grant will fund our research on understanding how the immune system combats malaria and the development of a vaccine that effectively protects people from malaria.
“Many communities in our region, such as in Papua New Guinea, suffer a very high burden of malaria. A highly effective malaria vaccine could transform the health of those communities.”
Ms Roxburgh will receive AUD$639,750 for research aimed at reducing mortality among people who inject drugs, with a particular focus on advancing global knowledge of the drivers of fatal and non-fatal overdose within rapidly changing drug markets.
Ms Roxburgh is a Senior Research Officer with the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) and coordinator of the National Illicit Drug Indicators Project that monitors trends in alcohol and other drug-related harms.
Burnet Co-Head of Adolescent Health, Associate Professor Peter Azzopardi, and Econometrician Dr Nick Scott, are among the Chief Investigators for a new Centre of Research Excellence (CRE) – Driving Global Investment in Adolescent Health – to be administered by the University of Melbourne.
The CRE was established with NHMRC funding valued at AUD$2,492,380.
